Red Silence
by Cara-dactyl
Summary: A slightly VincentxTifa One-shot. This was the very first story I ever wrote about these two characters, when I began writing four years ago. This scene minus Barret, I just added him for effect , happened when I was fighting the dragon in the Northern Cave. Sure, Vincent was wearing the Cover Materia, so it wasn't really just him protecting Tifa.. But still, we can imagine.. :)


_This was the first story I had ever written for Final Fantasy VII. This was the start of a lonnnggggggg obsessive love of the Vinti relationship. I hope you enjoy it._

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He was never one to talk. Not even to Cloud. Only in moments of pending danger, did she ever hear him say anything. She understood that something from his past was causing this pain, but she never questioned it. She did not want to be any more of a bother to him. Not only that, but his intimidating stature made it hard for her to look him in his blood red eyes in the first place.

_A loud shot rang out in the darkness_

Tifa crouched there on the ground, a small trickle of blood running down her arm, and another on her leg, as her friends Cloud, Barret and that cryptic gunslinger continued to fight the dragon among drops in the Northern Cave. The dragon had been going solely for her, clawing at her, smashing her with its tail, and attempting to breathe its dangerous dark breath on her. Barret was trapped on the other side of the dragon, as was Cloud. Vincent was nowhere to be seen, presumably moving from place to place around the giant lizard. Three times now, _three_ times, Barret had a clear shot to cast Cure2 on her, but did not. He rather healed Vincent and Cloud, and himself. Tifa would not assume bad things about Barret, though. There was more on her plate than to assume Barret purposely didn't heal her. Tifa tried to call Barret for help, but the dragon attacked as she called, swiping at Cloud with its tail.

Then her vision of the dragon was broken by a flash of red, and Vincent was there, tossing her an X-potion. Tifa grabbed it, and Vincent jumped away. As Tifa healed herself, a thought flashed through her head. Vincent and herself weren't completely distanced. She could remember standing beside Cloud, and asking Vincent about his nightmare back under the ShinRa Mansion. Although he never answered her, his eyes never left hers as he spoke to Cloud. He seemed fixated on her at the time.

Another time, shortly after they met Cid, and the Bronco crashed into the water, Tifa had been violently thrown into the ocean from the force landing. As the plane drifted away from her, she tried swimming after it, but was losing ground. In an instant, Vincent had stood from the plane and thrown himself into the water after her, and was beside her. Grabbing her, he made quick work of bringing them both back to the airplane, and managed to climb back onto it, with her in tow.

Through the times, she and Vincent had shared a few words. Once, while staying up on watch while the others slept, Tifa would try to talk to him, mostly about anything besides ShinRa, not wanting to upset him. She had asked him where he was from, and what he liked to do in his spare time. Most of his answers were blunt, and unimaginative, but she found he liked to read long novels, and study the sciences. He had never asked anything of her, and in fact shut himself away from her after so many questions. Tifa never gave up, though. Another time, in Gongaga, Tifa had found an old, junky piano in one of the huts, but it still worked. Tifa saw Vincent quietly come in behind her in the reflection of the finish on the piano, but never said anything, or acknowledged him, just as she knew he would want. He stayed there behind her, listening as she played on the piano for quite some time, until Tifa finally sighed, and closed the lid over the keys, and quit.

_The sound of scaly flesh being torn open by a rigid blade pierced the air_

These thoughts flew by in a blur through Tifa's mind and she took the potion, and healed herself. Turning to the dark dragon, she rushed forward, leaping up to the dragon's face, and performed a dazzling show of punches and kicks that would kill any man. But Tifa never saw it coming; in all of about ten seconds, the dragon twisted its neck and head away from Tifa and raised its clawed foot in the air. Tifa only had time to look towards the razor sharp talons as they came down harder than a cinderblock and blew her away, into the side of a rock face. Tifa felt her body smash into the side and fall down. Surprisingly enough, it didn't kill her, and it was _incredibly_ painful, but she did know that a great deal of damage had been done to her.

Slowly, and painfully, Tifa managed to shift her arms up to push her front up off the ground. She sat up on her legs, and looked with blurry vision at the dark gray mass of scales that was headed her way. She faintly heard Barret scream her name as the dragon snarled. Tifa braced herself as the head filled with rows of teeth shot down at her. Tifa shut her eyes and waited, but the blow never came. Tifa opened her eyes and looked, to see Vincent had dived in front of her, and the dragon chomped down on his torso. She could see out of the corner of her eye, Barret and Cloud, standing there, with shocked expressions.

The next thing that happened fairly quickly, but for Tifa, time was slowed down. Vincent's head turned around from the dragon to her face, and he looked her in the eyes. A trickle of blood streamed from the corner of his mouth as he cracked one of the smallest smiles Tifa had ever seen, and also one of the first from _him_. It wasn't a malicious smile, either. Not one that Galian Beast or Hell Masker would smile, it was gentle. Tifa felt tears burning in the back of her eyes. She had been careless, letting the dragon slip out of her grip, and now Vincent was going to be the one to pay for it. Why did he get in the way? Why? _She_ was the one who deserved the repercussions. Vincent's eyes never left hers, as the dragon lifted up and shook his body violently before tossing him to the side.

Tifa got up as Barret and Cloud both attacked the dragon. Vincent lay out cold on the ground across from her. With renewed anger, Tifa pulled out her backup out of her pocket. Casting the red Materia, her ice goddess came down from the sky and cast Diamond Dust on the dragon, and finally finished the giant lizard. The trio ran to their fallen friend, and Barret shouted some obscenities and Cloud threw a Phoenix Down on him. Vincent stirred, and Tifa sighed in relief. Vincent had the strength to get himself up, and Barret rattled his gun arm and cheered. Cloud nodded and said "Let's get out of here." Tifa did not move as Barret and Cloud started off, but instead turned to look at Vincent one last time. He made eye contact briefly before giving her a sharp nod and turning to follow.

Maybe he didn't need to talk. Maybe, actions alone were worth more than any word he could have said in that time. Tifa found that she was beginning to realize the true meaning of the phrase 'actions speak louder than words'.


End file.
